Eaves-trough cleaner



(No Model.)

N. "P. MOKENNEY. EAVES TROUGH CLEANER.

No. 510,515. Patented Dec. 12, 1893.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

NATHAN P. MOKENNEY, OF DIXON, ILLINOIS.

EAVES-TROUGH CLEANER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 510,515, datedDecember 12, 1893.

Application filed August 19,1893.

T0 to whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHAN P. MoKENNEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dixon, in the county of Lee'and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Eaves-Trough Cleaners; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention has reference to eaves trough cleaners, and is designed to furnish an expeditious,simple and efficie'nt mode of preventing an accumulation of sediment and dead leaves in such trough.

It is a matter of general knowledge that great quantities of dust are deposited upon roofs, which ensuing rains wash down into the eaves trough, where such dust constantly accumulates as mud or sediment, not only lessening the capacity and impairing the discharging quality of the trough, but by damming the water therein, and preventing perfect drainage, and by retaining moisture in such sediment, prematurely rusting out the bottom of the trough, and greatly shortening the period of its otherwise durability. In addition to this the falling leaves from adjacent shade trees, particularly in the fall of the year, drop upon the roof and are carried by the rain into the trough, where their adhesive quality resists the slight movement of the water in such trough, and remain to work the same evils above named, and some of them are carried to the opening of the conductor or leader, and clog such opening and obstruct the exit thereat of the water. Various modes have been heretofore devised to remedy these evils-mainly by the use of screens placed over the top of the trough. These have been found inefficient for two reasons. First, they do not at all obstruct the descent into the trough of the aforesaid dust, and second, large fiat leaves, when wet, adhere to and cover such screen and obstruct, in some degree, the passage of the water into the troughcausing it to run over the edge of the latter.

Serial No. 483.520. (No model.)

In this invention, it is my purpose to avoid the objections aforesaid by providing convenient means for periodically inverting the trough, whereby accumulations therein of every character, will fall therefrom by their gravity or such inversions can be rapidly repeated with sufficient jars to dislodge any adhering substance, and the trough then returned to its normal position. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1, is a perspective of a portion of a roof of a building provided with my invention, the inverted position of the eaves trough being shown in dotted lines. Fig. 2, is a detail of the mechanism employed in my invention.

Similar letters and figures refer to similar parts in the two views.

A represents the side of a building and B the roof thereof; the latter projecting more or less beyond the side of the former.

O is the usual eaves trough pivotally supported in place under the projecting edge of the roof B, as follows :A suitable rod or wire D is attached atits inner end to the building A, and projecting substantially horizontally outward to a point under the lower edge of the roof B, and there suitably pivoted to the endof the trough 0 near the upper edge of said end, and about midway thereof. The attachment is made at each end of the trough O, and when necessitated by the length of such trough, intermediate rods D may be pivoted to suitable cross pieces placed in or across the trough G at the locality of such intermediate rods. The latter will be bowed upward slightly near their outer ends to clear the inner edge of the trough. The trough can be alternately supported intermediately by curved brackets, attached to the building-at their inner ends, and curved at their outer portions to fit up against the bottom of the trough C.

At some convenient point there is formed on the exterior of the trough G the segmental rack F extending, transversely, from the inner edge of said trough to a point somewhat beyond the center of its base.

A horizontal arm G is attached at its inner end to the building A in or near the transverse line of segment F and slightly below the latter. On the outer end of arm G there is pivotally seated a frictional gear H with peripheral cogs 1 adapted to engage the cogs 2 of segment F. Transverse openings 3 are formed in arm G as optional seats for gear H, by means of which said gear may be adjusted to and from the building A in proper relation to segment F. A vertical rod J is loosely sleeved, near its upper end, in bar G a short distance from building A, and has its lower portion passed through a metallic eye 4 in the outer end of the horizontal stay K attached to the building.

A rod L pivotally connected at its upper end to one of the extremities of the periphery of segmental gear I1, and extending diagonally downward is pivotally attached at its lower end to vertical rod J, intermediate the supports of the latter. The lower extremity of rod J extends to within convenient reach of the ground. By moving it up and down the trough C is inverted and returned to its normal position at will. A set screw 5 seated in the walls of eye 4 serves to lock the rod J, and through the medium of rod L, the trough C in any desired position.

The conductor N, has at its upper end an oblique form; its outer edge P being shorter than its inner one.

The short discharge stem 0 of the trough G has an oblique lower end R, in reverse, its outer edge being the longer. This construction permits the stem 0 to swing out of communication with the conductor N when the trough is tilted, and to return when the trough is returned.

The upper end of conductor N may be made of greater diameter than stem 0, and by drawing the latter, through the medium of rods J and L, snug against the inner wall of conductor N, the loss of any water is prevented. In the inversion of trough C, by suddenly drawing downward on rod J, the outer edge of said trough may be thrown over onto the roof B, and the jar of such contact will dislodge any accumulations in said trough.

My invention is also useful in permitting the washing off of the roof without carrying the dirty water into the cistern.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In combination with a suitable roof, the trough C, pivotally suspended thereto and provided with rack F. gear H pi votally seated beneath said rack, a conductor N, provided with oblique upper end P, and an actuating wire L attached to said gear, and dependent therefrom, substantially as shown and for the purpose specified.

2. In combination with the building A the pivotally seated trough 0 provided with rack F, gear II, pivotally seated beneath said rack, and actuating rod L attached to said gear, substantially as shown and for the purpose specified.

3. In combination with the building A, the trough O, pivotally seated under the edge thereof, and provided with rack F, the gear I-I, pivotally seated under said rack, actuating rod L, attached to said gear, and suitable means for locking said rod, substantially as shown and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I afifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

NATHAN P. MCKENNEY.

Witnesses:

JEROME F. MCKENNEY, MAX ROSENTHAL. 

